Graduate and Undergraduate Studies

Graduate and Undergraduate Studies

Question One

My graduate educational experience will differ from my undergraduate experience in various ways. For instance, while undertaking my graduate studies, I will be surrounded by like-minded people. The average age of a graduate student is 33, and most of them work at least a part-time job. On the other hand, students undertaking undergraduate courses are often typically younger and need more professional experience (Paul & MacDonald, 2020, p. 27). The participants in graduate studies are ranked based on something other than competition, as one will find that fellow students are more prepared to provide insights, ideas, and support to help their colleagues do even better in the topic they are researching. The other difference I expect to find while undertaking my graduate studies relates to the program’s flexibility (Paul & MacDonald, 2020, p. 39). Undergraduate educational experience entails switching majors or even schools because of the similarities of programs across institutions and the time allocated for completing the degree program. However, in graduate school, it would be challenging for me to change to a new program or school. Another difference relates to course load. While undergraduate students may always be involved with juggling 5-6 courses every semester, undertaking graduate studies would only see me taking three advanced-level classes. Unlike undergraduate studies, graduate courses involve more reading and research and have fewer assignments.

Question Two

A graduate learning community comprises people who have graduated and are now engaging in collective learning based on a topic of interest within the community. Some of the components of a graduate learning community include graduate students who engage in discussions on how they can succeed in their selected discipline, finding solutions to challenges in supportive networks, utilizing research skills, together with embracing a shared leadership model (Brower et al., 2007, p. 13). The graduate learning community differs from an undergraduate learning community in various aspects. One of the variations is that participants in the graduate learning community are graduates with shared goals and expectations, while those in the undergraduate community have fewer expectations. The other differences are that the learning material in the graduate learning community is more advanced, and learners communicate more collaboratively (Brouwer & Jansen, 2019, p. 223). For example, unlike in undergraduate studies, participants in the graduate learning community are often asked to think of everyday applications of a phenomenon.

Question Three

Different expectations exist for communication and collaboration between graduate and undergraduate learning communities. On the one hand, learners in a graduate community tend to adopt a much more sophisticated type of communication when interacting with colleagues with similar aims (DiVincenzo, 2014, p. 21). In addition, graduate students are more concerned with conversations involving their job sector as they possess enough experience (Brouwer & Jansen, 2019, p. 227). On the other hand, undergraduate students may need to be better-versed with information to contribute to academic discussions as they have hardly examined their career fields.

References

Brouwer, J., & Jansen, E. (2019). Beyond grades: developing knowledge sharing in learning communities as a graduate attribute. Higher Education Research & Development, 38(2), 219-234.

Brower, A. M., Carlson-Dakes, C. G., & Barger, S. S. (2007). A learning community model of graduate student professional development for teaching excellence in higher education. CIRTL Publication, 1-29.

DiVincenzo, A. (Ed). (2014). Mastering graduate studies. Phoenix, AZ: GrandCanyonUniversity.

Paul, J. A., & MacDonald, L. (2020). Analytics curriculum for undergraduate and graduate students. Decision Sciences Journal of Innovative Education, 18(1), 22-58.

ORDER A PLAGIARISM-FREE PAPER HERE

We’ll write everything from scratch

---

Respond to each of the following questions. Each response should be at least 90 words.
1) How do you think your graduate educational experience will be different from your undergraduate experience? Explain your response and provide examples.

2) How would you describe a graduate learning community? What would be its key components, and how might they differ from those of an undergraduate learning community? Explain your response and provide examples.

3) Are communication and collaboration expectations the same in a graduate learning community? Explain your response and provide examples.